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Iraqi Political Groups - Part 1 - Part 2 C 0 5 9 519 5.3 'olitical Groups Part 1 (b)(3) IRAQI POLITICAL GROUPS - PART 1 - PART 2 RFE/RL, 21 June 04 Iraqi Political Groups - Part 1 Compiled by Kathleen Ridolfo Constitutional Monarchy Movement. Headed by Sharif Ali bin al-Husayn, cousin of the deposed Iraqi king, Faysal II, who was killed in the 1958 coup in Iraq. The group's website claims: "Constitutional monarchy is the one thing that could rescue Iraq from the factional conflicts between the various groups over the question of the position of the head of the state, because the Monarch would not favor one group to the detriment of another, but rather would represent all the people." The group supports an elected national assembly, and claims that it can maintain a balance in Iraq because "Monarchy needs not to be affected by the political ideologies of the competing parties because its main role is an arbitrator between all and guarantor of the constitution." The CMM was one of seven opposition groups to receive financial support from the United States prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom. However, the group was not afforded a seat on the interim Governing Council, much to the chagrin of al-Husayn (http://www.iraqcmrn.org/). Da'wah (Call) Party. Established in 1957-58, it is largely seen as a Shi'a organization, but does claim some Sunni membership. The spokesman of the party is Ibrahim al-Jalari, who served on the Iraqi GoVerning Cbuncil: The party is arguably -the biggest and most well-supported Shi'a group in Iraq, having long opposed Ba'athist rule. The group was primarily based in Iran from 1980, after Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein declared membership to the group as punishable by death. The group attempted to assassinate former Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz in April 1980. The party joined the so-called Group of .Seven leading Iraqi political parties to enjoy the support of the United States, following the downfall of the Hussein regime. Prior to that, the group had limited contact with Iraqi opposition parties. Al-Da'wah claims to have lost 77,000 members to the Hussein regime. Some 40,000 Shi'ites were deported by the Ba'athist regime beginning in the 1970s after being labeled "Iranians" (http://daawaparty.com). Iraqi Islamic Liberation Party. Founded in 1953 by Sheikh Taqi al-Din al-Nabahani and led by Sheikh Abd al-Qadim Zallum, who died in April 2003. The group considers itself a "branch" of the Iraqi Islamic Liberation Party, which is present in a number of countries. The party is also banned in many Arab countries states, including Iraq under previous regimes. It supports the establishment of an Islamic state under an Islamic caliphate. Party spokesman Abu al-Harith Azzam told Baghdad's "Al-Shira" in an interview published on .10 February 2004 that his group did not register (to date, groups are not required to do so) as a political party, and has no intention of doing so. The party does not coordinate with other Islamic parties. The party calls for an end to the occupation of Iraq, but does not support attempts to end the occupation through military action. The party is open to any Islamic sect, and any ethnicity, Azzam said, adding, "Being a Muslim is enough to accept him as a member in the party." The group's membership is unknown, but is thought to be negligible. Iraqi Justice and Development Party. Established in December 2003, "Al-Ittihad" described it as a "political, social, and civil party that calls for political participation within a federal Iraq." It reportedly supports religious and ideological freedom. The group also supports Arab and Islamic causes and calls for 53 - \ ACLU-RDI1 of 3 5100 p.1 7/19/04 8:32 A C 0 5951953 olitical Groups Part 1 Islam to be the basic source of legislation in Iraq. Calls for equality among citizens to be upheld. It is not known whether it is related to Turkey's ruling party of the same name. Iraqi National Accord. Founded in 1990 and headed by interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi. The INA was one of the prominent opposition groups that received funding from the United States before the overthrow of the Hussein regime. Also known as the National Reconciliation Movement. The group published its ''political program" in its newspaper, "Baghdad," on 17 February 2004. It stressed the need to transfer sovereignty in accordance with the agreed upon date between Iraqis and coalition forces, as well as the transfer of responsibility for natural resources and foreign policy to Iraqi hands; it stressed the need for a national reconciliation project that includes a financial settlement for police, army, and government workers who were dismissed from their duties by the coalition, and the participation of those not involved in the regime's crimes in a new civil society; strengthening security and defense capabilities; and adopting new economic initiatives. The INA also calls for strong relations with Iraq's neighbors, the establishment of a vibrant civil society, and the drafting of a strong constitution that would protect the rights of all Iraqis. Allawi is a. former Ba'athist who left Iraq in the 1970s after a falling out with Hussein. He later survived an assassination attempt in the U.K, in 1978, purportedly ordered by Hussein. Membership of his group largely consists of ex-Ba'athists and military men opposed to the Hussein regime. A medical doctor by training, Allawi is a Shi' a. Islamic Democratic Current Party. Established in March 2003 and led by Muhammad Abd al-Jabbar Shabbut, who is from Al-Kut. Shabbut told the Israeli . Arab weekly "Al-Sinnarah" in an interview published on 7 May 2004 that his party combines Islam as a cultural basis and democracy as a neutral procedural mechanism as its platform. Shabbut has been an Islamic political activist since the mid-1960s. He left Iraq in the late 1970s after the Ba'athist regime clamped down on the Islamic movement in Iraq. According to "Al-Sinnarah," Shabbut was sentenced to death in absentia for his antiregime activism, and only returned to Iraq following the fall of the Hussein regime. Shabbut claims some 40,000 Sunni, Shi'ite, and Christian members to his party, which he says does not insist on an Islamic affiliation. He told "Al-Sinnarah" that based on opinion polls inside Iraq, "We are confident that the Iraqi people are aware of the need to elect a statesmen and not a man of religion as the head of state." He added that his party is different from other Islamic parties because it "is not a religious party," and because it "officially adopt[s] democracy in its documents and considers [democracy] part of the Islamic theory" of the party. Shabbut is the author of 13 books on Islamic thought. Islamic Movement of Kurdistan. Established in the mid-1980s and led by Mullah Ali Abd al-Aziz Halabji. Set up a governing body in the Halabjah region of northern Iraq in 1998, but reportedly does not impose strict Islamic law. Abd al-Rahman Abd al-Rahim, a member of the group's consultative council, told London-based "Al-Sharq al-Awsat" in an interview published on 5 August 2003 that the movement's leader was unjustly arrested by U.S. forces in Halabjah. He claimed that Mullah Ali Abd al-Aziz is a member of the former Iraqi opposition who has since called for "means other than weapons" to further the movement's agenda. Asked about reported links by the movement to Ansar Al-Islam group, Abd al-Rahim said, "The. Ansar Al-Islam group members were not happy with our new [nonviolent] policy. They are vehemently opposed to the stand of [Abd al-Aziz] on cooperation with the provincial [Kurdistan] government and the movement's participation in municipal elections." Asked whether the movement will disarm its fighters, he said, "Every party in the world should reconsider its stands and policies every now and then, and this applies to us.... We believe that our priorities at this current stage are limited to i; preaching and guidance. And I assure you that we have no training or other camps. All our activities are now confined to party organizational affairs." It has received aid from Iran, the United States (after 1998), and possibly Saudi Arabia. ACLU-RDI2 of 3 5100 p.2 7/19/04 8:32 /V C 0 5 9 519 53 'olitical Groups Part 1 Kurdistan Islamic Group. Established by Ali Bapir in May 2001. Bapir is a former member of the Islamic Movement of Kurdistan. The group reportedly receives funding from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. It has been linked to the terrorist group Ansar Al-Islam, but released a statement on 11 October 2004 in "Komar denying that any such links existed. Bapir was interviewed in "Kornai" in January 2003. He said: " Our policy is that we enter into fraternity and cooperation with all Islamic groups. We seek such fraternal relations with Islamic parties and organizations, Islamist figures, and groups that follow a Salafi tradition or a Sufi or a scientific tradition. In the Islamic Group, we believe that the group must be open-minded and seek fraternity with all those who call or act for Islam. If we see a mistake, we will try to correct it through dialogue and by creating a fraternal atmosphere." Kurdistan Communist Party. Declared itself a party in 1993 after separating from the Iraqi Communist Party. It is headed by Kamal Shakir, who succeeded Karim Ahmad in April 2004.
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